Bushfires kill endangered nocturnal wallabies

A mala shelters beside a tree at a burnt out enclosure in Central Australia.

NT Parks and Wildlife

The Parks and Wildlife Commission says six mala have died as a result of fires that swept through their conservation enclosure at Kings Canyon two weeks ago.

The director of species conservation, Dr Simon Ward, says the mala paddock is home to nearly 50 of the endangered nocturnal wallabies.

He says there is only 10 per cent of the vegetation left and rangers are providing food and water every day.

Dr Ward says 44 surviving mala have been counted among rabbits living in the enclosure.

"On the good side is that the rabbits dug a lot of warrens around the paddock and the mala are living down the warrens along with the rabbits, presumably, and so that has provided some shelter for them as well."

He says the priority is to repair the electrified fence.

"The mala paddock has a predator-proof fence around it because mala are very threatened by cats and foxes and can only really survive on the mainland behind fences.

"So that is one of the few populations that we have left and so the fire did quite a bit of damage."